Ericka Ruffin Lucas, 56, was shot on the evening of August 29, 2025, on the 600 block of East Nelson Avenue in Wake Forest, North Carolina. Officers arrived just after 6 p.m. and found her with a gunshot wound; she was taken to a nearby hospital with life-threatening injuries. Investigators said the shooting was not a drive-by and that she was not the intended target but was struck in crossfire.

A former principal of Rolesville High School and the wife of Wake Forest High School’s head football coach, Lucas remained hospitalized for several days and died from her injuries on September 9, 2025. Within days of her death police announced arrests: 18-year-old Dexter Lamont Mills and his 16-year-old cousin were charged with first-degree murder; the juvenile’s name was withheld because of age. Community tributes and fundraisers followed as officials asked anyone with information about the August 29 shooting to come forward.

Did anyone in the Wake Forest area see or hear anything on East Nelson Avenue that Friday evening?